CORPORATE ADVISORY & PLANNING
Corporate Planning is a process of formulating a detailed action plan in order to achieve the organization's goals taking into account its resources and work environment. It involves a formal structured approach to achieve the desired objectives. Success of the Corporate Planning depends on the SWOT analysis i.e. analyzing strengths and weaknesses of the organization & opportunities and threats of the environment it works in.
With its Corporate Advisory services ARK aims to achieve the following for its clients-
• Optimizing the cost of overall budgeting process
• Reduce the time involved to complete the budgeting cycle
• Improve data integrity and security
• To record actual business data based on resulting value, capital worth and performance cost
• Providing Budgeting solutions for effective money management
• Monitoring and optimization of cash flows
• Identification of measures to balance the outflows in order to achieve the Corporate objective in alignment with the available resources of the organization.
Under the gamut of Advisory Services ,ARK also provides MANAGEMENT CONSULTANCY SERVICES to its clients.
Management Consultancy is the practice of helping and guiding the organizations to improve their working and performance .The consultancy starts primarily by studying the organization in its present stage of operations.This basic study is extremely essential to move further. Without knowing the organization no management consultancy process can start. After analyzing the existing organizational problems, the plans for improvement, are designed. Organizations may take the services of management consultants for either gaining external advice or to access the consultants' specialized expertise.
As a result of their exposure and relationship with numerous organizations, consulting firms are aware of Industry's best practices, which they put into use for different organizations. Although due to the specific nature of situations in one organization the similar consultancy practices may not apply, so the Management consultants have to treat every organization differently, not offering the same set of solutions to all.
ARK in the area of Management Consultancy provides the following services –
• Organizational Change Management in terms of Teams,Individuals or complete Management structure
• Process analysis
• Technology implementation
• Strategy development or
• Operational improvement services
ARK often brings its own proprietary methodologies or frameworks for identification of the problems and to solve the same in an effective and efficient way.
The other areas of Consulting may include-
• Strategic management
• Operations management
• Project Management
• HR Planning and Payroll Management.
• Internal Controls Management
• Profit Centre Management
• Cost Centre Management
Cost Management, MIS & Budgeting
Cost management is the process of effectively planning and controlling the budget of a business. Cost management is a form of management accounting that allows a business to predict the imminent expenditures in order to reduce the chances of budget overages in the business .
Cost management is employed by many businesses as an integral part of business management. It is employed both for specific projects, as well as for the over-all business model. When applying it to a Project, expected costs are calculated both at the stage of Planning and Implementation. All expenses are recorded and monitored to make sure they stay in line with the cost management plan. After the Project completion, the predicted costs and actual costs can be compared and analyzed, helping future cost management predictions and budgets.
ARK gives an array of services under the head of COST MANAGEMENT which involves –
• Collecting, analyzing, evaluating and reporting cost statistics for budgeting.
• Implementing an effective Cost Management System in order to control the overall budgeting of the company.
• Identification of future expenditures in a business to reduce budget overages.
By doing this ARK is able assist and guide the client in the following ways-
• Is able to predict the future expenses and costs of the Project
• Is able to maintain the central record of all predicted expenses
• Is able to ensure that costs are approved before purchases are made
• Is able to control the overall Project expenses
These services help its clients' to run the operations smoothly and successfully without any financial glitches.
MIS & BUDGETING-
A Management information system (MIS) provides information that organizations requires to manage its operations efficiently and effectively.MIS are computer systems which are used for managing the five primary elements of a business-
1. Hardware
2. Software
3. Data
4. Procedures and
5. People
MIS are distinct from other Information systems because they are used to analyze and facilitate strategic and operational activities.These systems help the organization to generate information to improve efficiency and effectiveness of decision making and operations.MIS broadly include the following systems-
• Decision Support Systems
• Resource Management System
• Human Resource Management
• Enterprise Resource Planning
• Enterprise Performance Management
• Supply Chain Management
• Customer Relationship Management
• Project Management
• Database Retrieval Systems
• Transaction processing systems
• Marketing Information Systems
• Office Automation Systems
ARK holds an expertise in designing the most effective MIS for its clients which are best suited to their area of operations and benefits the clients' in the following ways-
• Effective analysis of their strengths and weaknesses with the help of Revenue reports, Employees' performance record etc.
• Improvement in their business processes and operations.
• Giving an overall picture of the company and acting as a communication and planning tool.
• The customer data and feedback can be used to align their business processes as per the customers' need.
• The effective management of customer data can further help the company in Direct marketing and Promotional activities
• Helps a company to gain a competitive edge over its competitors.
Business Planning
A business plan is a document that describes the business, its objectives, strategies, target market and financial forecasts. It's a blueprint of the future plan of the organization.
Business plans can vary enormously in length, style and content, but the key is to ensure the document is realistic, practical and regularly reviewed. It should not only set the direction for the business but act as a reference point for measuring its performance. Designing a perfect business plan is an extensive activity but one's achieved, it helps the organization to increase its profitability as well as efficiency in its operations.
ARK's team of experts can play an important role in outlaying a perfect Business Plan for their clients which is best suited to their field of operations. An ideal and effective Business Plan facilitates the client in the following ways-
• Outlining clear goals and long-term vision
• Examining Business idea from various other perspectives also
• Determining the Commercial viability of new ideas
• Identification of the business's strengths, weaknesses, opportunities and threats
• Develop strategies to successfully operate and market the business
• Applying for Finance from a Financial Institution
• Securing Investors, Sponsors & suppliers for the Business
• Establish measures to evaluate the Business success.
Since a business plan is a road map that guides the organization in the planning process, it is important to evaluate the suitability of the Business Plan in relation to the operations of the organization. The experts at ARK undertake extensive research to understand the requirement of the client and suitably design the plan for them. The various different types of Plans the experts at ARK design for their clients are as follows-
• Start-up plan
• Internal plan
• Operations plan
• Strategic plan
• Growth/expansion plan
• Feasibility plan
Internal Audit
Under the preview of Internal Audit ARK along with Audit also covers Fraud Investigation and Concurrent Audit.
Internal Auditing is an independent consulting activity designed to improve and add value to an organization's operations. Internal Auditing is a catalyst for improving an organization's governance, risk management and management controls by providing insight and recommendations based on analyses and assessments of data and business processes.
ARK holds an experience of more than two decades in the area of Internal Auditing .The Internal Auditing team at ARK has conducted many Internal Audits for its clients and have been able to help their organizations in the following ways-
• Improving the organization's governance
• Risk management
• Management control over efficiency & effectiveness of operations
• Safeguarding of its assets
• Reliability in Financial and Management reporting
• Compliance with laws and regulations
• Conducting proactive fraud audits to identify potentially fraudulent acts
• Participating in fraud investigations under the direction of fraud investigation professionals
• Conducting post investigation fraud audits to identify control breakdowns and establish financial loss
• Advising Management and the Board of Directors for better execution of their responsibilities.
FRAUD INVESTIGATION –Fraud is a misrepresentation or the concealment of a material fact with the intent and result that is acted upon by another to his loss or detriment. It may also be defined as the use of one's occupation for personal enrichment through the deliberate misuse or misapplication of the organization's resources or assets.
Fraud in an organization can be defined in many ways but it primarily contains four elements:
• The misrepresentation of a material fact
• Knowledge of the perpetrator that the factual misrepresentation was false
• The misrepresentation was made with the intent that it be relied upon by someone else
• The victim (the part or parties relying upon the factual misrepresentation) did rely on it and, as a result, incurred a loss
THE VARIOUS CATEGORIES OF OCCUPATIONAL FRAUD ARE-
• Asset Misappropriation involving false invoicing, payroll fraud or skimming
• Corruption involving receiving or offering bribes, extort funds from third parties or engage in conflicts of interest.
• Financial Statements Fraud involves the intentional misstatement or omission of material information from the organization's financial reports, reporting of fictitious revenues or the concealment of expenses or liabilities in order to make an organization appear more profitable than it really is.
Fraud detection is, or should be a continuous management function. Fraud detection and prevention should not be an occasional exercise, but rather a routine aspect of business.
ARK has also been providing the service of Fraud Investigation to its clients to help them run their operations smoothly without incurring Financial losses. ARK's mission and objective in this is the deterrence, detection and prevention of occupational fraud and abuse.
The procedure ARK follows in order to undertake the Fraud Investigation for its clients who are need of such services is-
• Undertakes Fraud Risk Assessment of the business or organization to disclose areas of risk or concern.
• Designs a Professional proactive fraud deterrence and prevention program in accordance with the organization's need
• Conducts a Professional fraud examination to determine whether fraud occurred, who may have been responsible and the amount of the loss.
• Reporting the Fraud and helping the organization to act against the one's held responsible for such fraud so that the organization does not suffer further losses.
CONCURRENT AUDIT – Concurrent audit is a systematic and timely examination of financial transcations on a regular basis to ensure accuracy, compliance with procedure and guidelines.
Concurrent audit is undertaken to reduce the time gap between occurrences of transaction and its checking. It serves the purpose of effective internal control.The main focus while conducting Concurrent audit it to ensure that transactions are not dealt with in routine but in adherence with the systems and procedures laid down.
It aims to ensure that the transaction or decisions are within the policy parameters laid down, they do not violate the instructions or policy prescriptions, and are within the delegated authority and in compliance with the terms and conditions.
ARK's aim in undertaking Concurrent Audit is-
• To find out any violation of procedures
• Ascertaining whether sanction for advances and expenditures is taken from competent authority
• Examining books of accounts records and registers to ensure that they are maintained in accordance with the prescribed systems
• Ensuring compliance of laid down systems, procedures and policies
• Adequate measures are being taken in advance to prevent future frauds, etc., to avoid difficulties, which may arise
• To check cash, securities,.etc., to ensure that they are in due order and in agreement with books
• Detection and arresting of any leakage of income, if any
• Evaluating the quality of customer services provided and giving useful suggestions
• Assessing overall performance of the branch while assessing productivity and profitability
• To offer useful comments on the basis of audit conducted
• Reporting any inefficiency in any operational level
• Reporting any irregularity in working which may result in financial or other loss to branch.
• Reporting to appropriate levels of managment for appropriate actions for remedial measures.
• Scrutinizing the completeness of documents submitted for availing advances and other facilities
• Physical checking of stocks and other assets at relevants places
• Follow up with authorities to ensure timely rectification of irregularities reported which were not rectified on the spot
• Verify prompt and regular submission of the periodical and statutory returns.
Pricing
Pricing is the process of determining the cost the company intends to receive for its products and services. Pricing is a fundamental aspect of financial model and is one of the four P's of the marketing mix ,the other three aspects been product, promotion, and place. Price is the only revenue generating element amongst the four Ps and thus it is all the more important that the company or the organization formulates the most ideal Pricing for its products in order to achieve maximum revenue generation .
Since the process needs a lot of research and market study it requires professional assistance and need to hire the services of a professional consultant who undertakes the complete process for them and achieve the most ideal Pricing . ARK provides excellent consultancy services in this field to its clients who intend to have the most competitive Pricing for its products.
ARK ,with the aim of achieving the best Pricing for its clients undertakes extensive research to study all the Pricing factors like-
• Manufacturing cost
• Market place
• Competition
• Market condition
• Brand
• Quality of product
• Type of Distribution channel used
• Type of promotions used
By formulating an ideal Pricing policy for their clients the team of experts at ARK is able to assist their clients in the many ways and they are able to-
• Achieve their financial goals by achieving the profitability
• Understand the market and its customers
• Understand the Product's positioning and the other variables in the marketing mix.